(see yourself through the eyes of another)
For a large part of my internship at Sci-Bono I worked in the exhibitry department, assisting the workshop team in creating a new exhibit called 'Dialogue in the Dark'. Although it is found all over Europe, Asia, South America and the US, it is the first of its kind to be opened on the whole African continent. It is an exhibit created to raise awareness about blindness and is meant to allow sighted people to experience the world as a person who is not able to see. The exhibit is comprised of 3 `rooms` so to speak, where each one has a different setting - a park, a street market, and a bar. Groups of about 8 people are taken through each of these rooms by a guide who is blind and are given the opportunity to really use their other senses to experience their surroundings. Being able to partake in creating this exhibit was an absolutely incredible opportunity which allowed me to meet some very inspirational people. One of these people was Daniela, a fellow Bulgarian who was flown over to train the guides in Johannesburg because of her experience in similar project in Germany and Austria. Getting to speak to Daniela and going through the exhibit was a really humbling experience, and showed both myself and other staff members that there is a lot more to discover about the world and people than simply what you see. When a co-worker asked Daniela how she recognizes people she explained that their voice played a key role. When introduced to a person, she said she usually gets enough information about a them simply by speaking with them. Upon going through the exhibit with my co-workers her words of how we can use our other senses to interpret the world around us really resonated with me and I allowed my sense of hearing, smell, and touch guide me. When interact with other people in the tour group I focused on recognizing them using these senses which made me think about how they would recognize me. Are they listening to my voice? Can they smell my perfume? When they shake my hand can they feel the rings on my fingers? Those were only a few of the questions going through my mind and it made me realize how many other ways someone can 'see' me.
For a large part of my internship at Sci-Bono I worked in the exhibitry department, assisting the workshop team in creating a new exhibit called 'Dialogue in the Dark'. Although it is found all over Europe, Asia, South America and the US, it is the first of its kind to be opened on the whole African continent. It is an exhibit created to raise awareness about blindness and is meant to allow sighted people to experience the world as a person who is not able to see. The exhibit is comprised of 3 `rooms` so to speak, where each one has a different setting - a park, a street market, and a bar. Groups of about 8 people are taken through each of these rooms by a guide who is blind and are given the opportunity to really use their other senses to experience their surroundings. Being able to partake in creating this exhibit was an absolutely incredible opportunity which allowed me to meet some very inspirational people. One of these people was Daniela, a fellow Bulgarian who was flown over to train the guides in Johannesburg because of her experience in similar project in Germany and Austria. Getting to speak to Daniela and going through the exhibit was a really humbling experience, and showed both myself and other staff members that there is a lot more to discover about the world and people than simply what you see. When a co-worker asked Daniela how she recognizes people she explained that their voice played a key role. When introduced to a person, she said she usually gets enough information about a them simply by speaking with them. Upon going through the exhibit with my co-workers her words of how we can use our other senses to interpret the world around us really resonated with me and I allowed my sense of hearing, smell, and touch guide me. When interact with other people in the tour group I focused on recognizing them using these senses which made me think about how they would recognize me. Are they listening to my voice? Can they smell my perfume? When they shake my hand can they feel the rings on my fingers? Those were only a few of the questions going through my mind and it made me realize how many other ways someone can 'see' me.
For those of you interested in finding out more about Dialogue in the Dark you can click on the link below which will lead you to the main DiD site.
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